Philippe Halsman

Even if many of you, including me, may not be familiar with his name, Philippe Halsman counts among the most original and most creative photographers of our times. I’m sure that most of you have already seen some of his works.

Before he started to focus on photography, the Latvian studied electrical engineering. When he moved to Paris in 1928, he worked as an independent portrait and fashion photographer. In 1940 Halsman emigrated to the United States, where he worked for “Life” magazine. His photos were published on the front page more than a hundred times.

In 1959 he became very successful with his photo series “Jump”. The pictures show famous celebrities as they were jumping in the air. The series reflects the humorous approach he has been using in photography. It has become a trademark of his entire creative work and makes his photos stick out. Another characteristic feature of his art was the surrealist aspect. The reason for this could be his close friendship with painter Salvador Dali. For more than 30 years they kept working together on diverse projects.

And those of you who have become inspired to watch a short and thrilling video about the collaboration of Dali and Halsman should definitely take a look here: